Girls volleyball came out on top against Carlsbad in a 3-1 victory, Oct. 2. Despite losing a close second set, the Wolverines won by wide margins in the last two sets. The team credits their victory to a strong shift in mentality from the first half of the game to the last.
This was the Wolverines’ fifth game in league play, making it a crucial victory for the team to keep their second place ranking in league. The game began very back and forth, but libero Peyton Jenson’s (12) digs and captain and setter Angeline Nguyen’s (12) sets were essential to win the first set, 27-25.
Nguyen said the team expected it to remain tight heading into the second set. But despite the teams being within one point of each other through most of the set, the Lancers were able to bring it home at the end of the set, winning 27-25. Nguyen said an important part of the team’s strong mentality is their ability to move on after mistakes.
“We all forget about the previous set and keep on moving forward with a next-ball mentality,” she said.
After losing the second set by just two points, the team talked about things to improve on before the third set. Middle and right side hitter Gabrielle Ngo (11), found that the team morale and energy shifted entirely after their huddle.
“The conversation in the huddle after that set was to limit errors on our side of the net since that’s what we can truly control,” Ngo said. “Having more energy and communication during the next set would also help us do better.”
The Wolverines opened the set with an early lead in the third and fourth sets, winning by 10 and 7, respectively.
During the last two sets, the momentum the Lancers attempted to regain was shut down due to the blocks by Vivian Roberts (12) and Peyton Erickson (11) as well as many kills from the offense. Roberts is averaging nearly 4 kills per set and leading the team.
“Our team knew that going into this game, we couldn’t let up because Carlsbad is still a good team and we need to always stay humble,” Ngo said. “When we have a lead we [sometimes] let up on energy, which can allow teams to catch up. Then when we catch ourselves, we snap out of it.”
After winning this game, the Wolverines moved into second place in the Coastal (NCC) League bracket as of 10/7.
Ngo said the team has many strengths, and its weaknesses can be fixed with extra focus and practice in those domains. Overall, she said the team is uniting at the right time, and as the season continues, they will continue to get better.
“I think we have very strong hitters,” Ngo said. “We all have very smart court IQ and some of us have great placement for hitting. I think we need to work on our [uncontested ball] conversion. It’s the easiest ball to receive, yet something about it we just don’t excel in. Working on it in practice will definitely help us.”
Ngo said she feels the team has a lot of potential and could place very highly in the standings as the season continues, a success she attributes largely to the coaching staff.
“The assistant coaches are so supportive and helpful in telling us what we need to do or give advice,” Ngo said. “Our head coach Nancy is good at telling us what we should focus on and expect from the other team and we appreciate all of them for everything that they do.”
